"Three hundred paper soldiers, but you only killed thirteen Great Flame Soldiers and captured thirteen souls. Has your paper man technique regressed?"
The great Taoist Daoshun snorted coldly:
"Those soldiers who have survived until now are not easy to deal with, so it is naturally becoming increasingly difficult to kill them."
"What's more, there is an outsider warrior who is causing trouble."
"From outside? We are lucky to have found that isolated city. There have been occasional cases like this in the past forty years."
"It's not luck, it seems that he came in with the Boundary Breaking Talisman."
"Break the Boundary Talisman? That's no wonder." The Taoist smiled slightly:
"You can't go back from here, you can go in but you can't leave. It would be a good thing if some foreign warriors could help these old soldiers in this isolated city regain some fighting spirit."
"Forty years ago, there were 100,000 soldiers, but now there are only 300 veterans left."
"If the fighting spirit is completely worn out, all the previous efforts will be wasted."
Daoshun nodded slightly:
"I heard that there is a small town at the foot of the Taoist temple of Xuantian Sect in Nanzhou for believers and pilgrims to live in."
"It is said that the world is full of suffering and famine, but there is a place like Qingming Town where believers can have enough food. The contrast between the two makes believers naturally have an endless supply of pure incense and vows."
"And the Hundred Mile Soul Binding Formation of our Da Dao Sect is much more magnificent than that of the Xuan Tian Sect."
For the immortal monks, the mortals in the Nine Provinces are the cattle and sheep that provide them with incense and vows.
At first they only knew how to let mortals worship devoutly, but as the immortal monks' understanding of the way of incense deepened, they came up with more and more tricks.
For immortal practitioners, mortals with strong wills and powerful spirits are more precious resources than ordinary mortal believers.
Thus, Nanzhou had the Qingming Town at the foot of the Qingming Mountains, and Zhongzhou had the Hundred Miles of Desert Soul-Binding Array.
"Brother Daoshun, this time you must admit defeat. These are just excuses."
Daoshun frowned and threw out a storage bag from his waist, which was taken by another Taoist.
The latter's spiritual consciousness moved, and he glanced at the spirit stones in the storage bag, and then he was satisfied.
"Brother Daoshun, don't be discouraged."
"The methods of refining Dao soldiers of our Dao Sect are more sophisticated than those of other immortal sects. Naturally, they are profound and difficult to master."
"Brother, you still need to practice more..."
.
Before the lonely city.
Qiao Mu sat on the ground and simply bandaged the wound with a bandage.
These bandages, medicines, dry food and water bags were all prepared by the female general at Anxi Pass and were obviously military supplies.
This made the old soldiers who were silently observing Qiumu from a distance feel a little excited.
The old soldiers who came out of the isolated city walked towards Qiaomu at this time. The leading old general bowed to Qiaomu and thanked him for the help he had just extended.
The leading veteran took off his helmet, revealing a weather-beaten face.
There were many marks of hacking on his armor, which was badly worn. His face was bronze, his body was slightly thin, his hair was gray, and only his eyes were bright as he looked up and down at Qiao Mu.
In his eyes, Qiao Mu, whose body age was over a hundred years old, looked even older than these old soldiers, but he was brave and fearless in battle. He wore no armor or military uniform, but he mastered the Dayan military spear skills perfectly.
This made him very confused about Qiao Mu's identity.
To say he is a veteran is too old.
You may not say he is not good at it, but his perfect military marksmanship is truly unforgettable.
"We are the remnants of the 100,000 soldiers who followed General Wu to fight against foreign enemies in the past." The old general sighed:
"Those were paper soldiers controlled by the immortal cultivators of the Immortal Sect."
"In recent years, Yi Ren has rarely appeared on the stage. He only hides behind the scenes and performs some magic."
"Since you two are citizens of Dayan, you are guests here, so follow me into the city."
The old general said he would take him into the city, but his eyes unconsciously glanced at Qiao Mu. After hesitating several times, he couldn't help but ask:
"Excuse me, old man, are you a soldier from Dayan?" The old general asked the first question.
“… .used to be.” Qiao Mu thought for a moment and replied.
He had served in the army in Yancheng in the past. Although not for long, he was still considered a soldier of Dayan.
This answer made the veteran's eyes dim slightly.
He originally wanted to ask in his heart whether this brave foreign veteran was the vanguard of the Dayan reinforcements... but now he couldn't ask it.
"May I ask if the current Emperor of Dayan still cares about the soldiers and civilians trapped in this city?" the old general asked again.
Qiao Mu was speechless for a moment.
As a result, the old soldiers around also fell silent. No one spoke anymore. They just continued to bandage the wounds and collect the bodies of their dead comrades.
Chapter 179 No Blood, No Tears
Half of the setting sun has fallen into the clouds, like half of a huge blood clot solidified in the sky.
The blood-red sunlight fell on the battlefield outside the isolated city, shining on the shoulders of the old soldiers, stretching out their shadows.
This isolated army was cleaning up the battlefield and collecting bodies. The old general wanted to take Qiao Mu and the other man into the city, but when they reached the city gate, they suddenly stopped.
"Old sir, don't rush into the city. I have something to say before you enter... This is not the place to talk, just follow me." The old general turned around.
Ever since he asked Qiumu those two questions, he fell into deep thought and made a decision at this moment.
The other veteran soldiers also paused, sensing something was wrong. They glanced at the veteran without making a sound and quietly surrounded him.
They didn't know what the old general was thinking. They just thought that the old general noticed that there was something fishy about Qiao Mu and the other man's identities, so he didn't let them enter the city.
But the old general shook his head slightly at them, turned to Qiao Mu and said:
"There are only three hundred old soldiers left in this lonely city, as well as women and children who cannot go to the battlefield..."
He did not take Qiao Mu into the city, but instead took him for a half circle along the dilapidated city wall.
"The city walls are not very effective against the alien paper soldiers, especially now, forty years ago. The city walls are already in tatters and cannot withstand the ravages of war."
"The city walls now only serve to protect against wind and sand..."
As you turn the corner of the city wall, your view suddenly opens up.
What appeared in Qiaomu's field of vision were countless tombstones in the desert, densely packed like a forest.
There is a forest of 100,000 steles outside the Parthia Pass, but they are just empty tombs. However, there is also a forest of 100,000 steles under this lonely city in the desert, where the bodies of soldiers are buried.
"Of the 100,000 soldiers forty years ago, only 300 veterans are left."
The old general's eyes dimmed slightly, and he bowed to Qiao Mu:
"My name is Hai Siyuan, and I am a sixth-rank commander of Dayan."
"Qiao Shuangsen." Qiao Mu also introduced himself, but then he also had a thought;
"Captain Hai, have you ever heard of Hai Wuya, the Minister of Rites of Great Yan?"
Hai Siyuan's hands trembled slightly, and he looked into Qiao Mu's eyes:
"Hai Wuya is my father's name... Is my father still alive?"
"He is still alive, and is still the Minister of Rites. I... Several of my family members have also been taken care of by Hai Wuya." Qiao Mu did not mention that Hai Wuya had just been released from the prison, and continued:
"Not only that, I also met a man outside this desert who also claimed to be the son of Hai Wuya. He should be your younger brother..."
Hai Siyuan stammered, as if he had a lot to say or ask, but in the end he just turned his head slightly and looked at the dense forest of steles under the city wall.
His white hair and yellow sand were blown by the wind, and his back looked a little lonely.
If Hai Wuya were still alive, he should be almost eighty years old now, right
It is rare for a person to live to be seventy years old. The fact that his father has lived to such an old age is a happy event worth celebrating.
Even his younger brothers at home still missed the existence of him as their big brother, which was really beyond his expectation.
But under the current circumstances, it is difficult for him to feel happy.
At twenty I joined the army, and at sixty I did not return.
When he went to the war, he was still a young man in his prime. Now he is over 60 years old and looks older than his father who was still middle-aged in his memory.
"If he is the son of the Minister of Rites, why is he only a sixth-rank commander? Are the other generals in the city still here?"
The person asking the question was not Qiao Mu, but Qianliyan, the storyteller next to him.
He was extremely curious about this isolated army trapped in the desert, and at this moment he could no longer hold back his questions.
He originally thought that this veteran might be a general under the command of the Martial Saint, but he didn't expect that he was just a sixth-rank captain.
"Where are the generals?" Hai Siyuan looked at the forest of steles and smiled softly:
"They are all lying here."
"A sixth-rank captain is already the highest official in this isolated city."
The Clairvoyant was obviously startled, and then asked:
"Then Li Changge, is General Li still here?"
Li Changge was also a very dazzling figure among the military officers of the Great Yan court. Among the 100,000 elite soldiers in the past, he was the second in command, only below the Martial Saint.
Since the Martial Saint escaped alone, then Li Changge must be the leader of this isolated army.
Hai Siyuan didn't say anything, but just took a few steps forward and stopped in front of a tombstone.
"General Li led us in the resistance for twenty years... but he died, too, twenty years ago."
This tombstone is no different from the other tombstones, it is just located slightly forward. If it were not for Hai Siyuan's guidance, Clairvoyance would not have been able to find it.
Twenty years... Qiao Mu's eyes moved slightly.
The establishment of Anxi Pass has a history of only twenty years.
Calculating the time, it was just when Mrs. Bai, who was guarding the pass, appeared at Anxi Pass.
This doesn't seem like a coincidence.
The original "Lingxi Jue" was named after the idea of telepathic communication between the two minds. It was originally a secret method to guide Li Changge and his wife to communicate with each other remotely.
Perhaps it was this "Lingxi Jue" that let Mrs. Bai know that Li Changge was still alive, so she arrived at the Anxi Pass.
"Lingxi Jue" is an intuitive sense in the dark. The mind can cross the hundreds of miles of desert and the immortal formation to sense from afar, but the physical body cannot be gathered because of the formation.
And is Li Changge's death also related to this "Lingxi Jue"
"You are suffering too much." The storyteller Qianliyan sighed slightly:
"Moreover, your enemies are not flesh and blood, nor are they barbarians of some alien race, but paper figures of immortal cultivators."
"The paper man has no blood or tears. Even if the paper man is broken into pieces, as long as the cultivator's magic power is restored, he can make a comeback."
"You have fought bravely until now, which is admirable, but what have you gained in return?"
The words of Clairvoyance touched the hearts of Hai Siyuan and others, and made many of them feel sad.
It would be fine if their enemies were ordinary foreign barbarians.
As the elite soldiers of Dayan, they are braver than ordinary soldiers.
If they were to kill foreign barbarians, they thought that even a one-for-one exchange would not be too much of a loss. Killing two would break even, and killing five or ten would be a huge profit even if they died.
But this isolated army is not an ordinary border guard. The enemy they face is immortal cultivators who are far more terrifying than the barbarians of the enemy country. They are the bloodless, tearless, and unconscious paper figures in the hands of the immortal cultivators.
Paper figures are just made by magic. Even if one soldier's life is exchanged for one hundred or one thousand paper figures, it would be a loss just to think about it.
Fighting against the enemy and dying on the battlefield can be considered an honor for the soldiers of Dayan.
But dying in a fight with a paper man is another matter.
The sacrifice of these soldiers will not help the battle situation, and I am afraid it will not help the overall situation of Kyushu either.
What makes Qianliyan even more sad is that in today's Dayan, probably no one knows that this isolated army still exists.